IEC areas of work

Relevant IEC Standards

IEC work in electrotechnology

If your company develops devices or systems that contain electronics or use, produce or store electricity, then you are certain to find an IEC TC/SC (Technical Committee or Subcommittee) that develops globally relevant standards you might want to use.

From the obvious to the not so obvious

IEC International Standards not only address safety, performance and reliability and provide built-in interoperability, they also include metrics and test procedures, and state-of-the art guidelines about the use of hazardous materials and substances, environmental impact and recycling.

World leading in EMC

The IEC is also the world leading organization for EMC (Electromagnetic Compatibility). It helps ensure the reliability and safety of all types of devices and systems, wherever they are used and exposed to electromagnetic environments.

Defining the rules and a common language

The IEC facilitates the complicated process of reaching consensus on the many rules, specifications, metrics and terminology that are needed to develop systems and products that work safely together anywhere in the world.

It helps create the many International Standards for electrical, electronic and related products, processes and technologies – collectively known as electrotechnology.

Supporting all forms of conformity assessment

IEC International Standards are the basis for and support all forms of conformity assessment.

The IEC handles three Conformity Assessment Systems.

It provides a standardized approach to testing and certification, eliminating national bias.

Certificates are issued by the national member certification bodies of the individual IEC Systems.

How the IEC works: A quick overview

The IEC accomplishes its work via 174 TCs and SCs (Technical Committees and Subcommittees) and close to 1 000 working groups. The 10 000 or so electrotechnology experts participating in these many working groups come from all around the world. Most are from industry, but some come from commerce, government, test and research laboratories, academia and consumer groups.

They are delegated by their IEC NC (National Committee), which is also the IEC member body. Each expert represents the combined interests of his or her national industry in the international standardization arena. Companies can participate at the international level via their IEC NC, representing the collective national viewpoint. This may seem complicated but it assures that industry interests rather than individual company interests are taken into account.

Experts prepare technical documents on specific subjects within their respective scopes. Those are then submitted to the IEC NCs for voting with a view to their approval as international standards. For a technical document to be approved as an IEC International Standard, at least 75% of all voting NCs must cast a positive vote. In this process, each country has only one vote.